Judge: NY School Can't Fire Teacher for Heroin Possession

22 Sep 2013

On Thursday, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Manuel Mendez ruled that a teacher at Williamsburg High School for Architecture and Design in New York, Damian Esteban, could not be fired even though he was found with 20 bags of heroin on him during jury duty in October 2012. Esteban told authorities he used heroin thanks to an ankle injury ; the Department of Education promptly fired him. But Mendez ruled that there was “no evidence that the conduct with which [Esteban] was charged affects his performance as a teacher.” Esteban is a self-described “scholar of Islamic Studies,” and has his Master’s in Islamic Studies from McGill University.